State of the College: 8 steps to the future

Faculty, staff and students filled the Milbank Chapel September 15 to hear President Levine and Dean Zumwalt deliver the annual State of the College address. Closed captioning was provided this year.

Faculty,
staff and students filled the Milbank Chapel September 15 to hear
President Levine and Dean Zumwalt deliver the annual State of the
College address. Closed captioning was provided this year.

After
new business and the introduction of new faculty and staff, the
President welcomed the community. The President offered a special
welcome to Professor Emeritus Maxine Greene, whom he called, "one of
the legends of the College." He reiterated the purpose of the
institution: to prepare the current and next generation of leaders and
to help shape the social debate and social policy on issues of
education. He then outlined how those ideas have been transformed into
action over the past five years.

He spoke about technology and
physical plant improvements saying, "We have remade the College into a
virtual technological community as well as upgraded facilities,
offices, the roof, the student lounge, the entrance ramp and
residential units."

The budget, salaries and revenues of the
school were also noted. Levine said that multi-year budgeting is being
put into practice and that the College has completed a major study on
comparable salaries of professional staff within and outside the
College. He added that results of the study will be brought to the
Professional Staff Assembly and the Managment Network. He also
mentioned the upcoming Capital Campaign, for which nearly $70 million
of the $140 million goal has already been raised.

"Reflecting on
the accomplishments over the last five years," Levine said, "I think
the most important thing we have done is to establish a vision of what
we want Teachers College to be."

He then outlined an eight-step
agenda for the future of the College.The first step involves the
continued academic reorganization of the College."Five-year planning
was approved by every department, and this year we are putting the
plans into place," Levine said. As part of this objective, the College
will establish a five-year plan for CEO & I, a comprehensive
enrollment plan and initiate task forces on issues such as financial
aid and incentives on research.

Technological development was
the second activity Levine stressed, including the establishment of TC
Ventures, which allows the College to "make the world our campus" with
educational products through technology. He also proposed providing
professional development in the use of technology for faculty members.
The work of the Technology Task Force, which met last year, will
continue and will specifically examine the issue of intellectual
property.

As a third step, the institution will look at "what we
are doing at TC" and how to make it stronger. A study underway by
Towers Perrin, a managment firm, will recommend ways to strengthen
administrative and customer services.

Fourth, a $6.5 million
gift will provide improvements to the library, Levine said. "This is a
chance for us to stop and ask what our library should look like in the
years to come."

The launching of the Capital Campaign and its
contribution to improvements to the physical plant, such as Horace
Mann, Milbank Chapel and Milbank Library, were the fifth and sixth
steps Levine mentioned.

The seventh step, according to Levine, is the development of a strategic planning process for the College.

"The
eighth issue, and the one I want to focus on," Levine said, "is
diversity in the community." As the College is moving in a new
direction, he added, the focus is being placed on quality, service,
equity and fairness.

"We are a world-renowned institution and
we talk about diversity all the time," Levine said. Although the
institution has a history of diversity in the student body and
curricula, more needs to be done. "I want us to agree on the agenda for
action," he added.

He discussed the issues that were highlighted
in community conversations last year, adding that the quality of life
at the College was an important concern. "It is a very difficult topic,
and one academic communities typically back away from," Levine said.
"We shouldn't. We can't. There are no cookie cutter solutions."

Levine
said that to address these concerns he established the Teachers College
Task Force on Diversity and Community. (See story on page 3). The Task
Force's effort to establish the College as a "magnet institution" for
diverse students, faculty, and staff is a goal Levine believes the
College should embrace. The Task Force offered 31 recommendations to
achieve this mission, and though Levine admitted he doesn't agree with
all 31, he said he agrees with "the vast majority of them."

The
next step, according to the President, is to bring the report to the
various groups that make up the College community. The community, he
said, needs to agree on the goals and the activities needed to achieve
this vision.

"I don't want to wait until the community has
finished its work in deliberating over the report," Levine added. "So I
plan to take the following actions immediately." First, he said he will
appoint himself to serve as the "point person" on diversity and,
second, he plans to begin an immediate search for an Assistant to the
President for Diversity and Community.

Lauding the work of
IUME (the Institute for Urban and Minority Education) the President
looked forward to an Institute with a more powerful voice regarding
urban and minority populations in the schools.

He also noted
his disappointment in the number of faculty recruited by the Target of
Opportunities Committee, which was established 12 years ago to recruit
faculty members of color. To remedy that, former TC Professor Ed Gordon
will work with the College on this agenda. The Task Force on Diversity
will also continue reviewing progress and advising the President.

In
addition to diversity and community, Dean Zumwalt said the College
needs to look at high standards and community as well as accountability
and community. "Taken together they present us with an interlocking set
of challenges," she said. "These are similar issues being faced by our
public schools and our nation. As one of the leading graduate schools
of education, we should be modeling the kind of learning communities we
advocate."

The Dean also announced that 53 faculty members
received letters of recognition for receiving exceptionally high course
evaluations in courses of nine or more students. Eight teachers
obtained high course evaluations in two or more courses, and were
publicly recognized and awarded a $300 stipend to be used at their
discretion. They were: Jay Huebert, Associate Professor, Organization
and Leadership; Lisa Miller, Assistant Professor, Counseling and
Clinical Psychology; Steven Silverman, Professor, Health and Behavior
Studies; Tom Sobol, Christian A. Johnson Professor for Outstanding
Practice; Ruth Vinz, Associate Professor, Arts and Humanities;
Christine Yeh, Assistant Professor, Counseling and Clinical Psychology;
and two instructors from Arts and Humanities, Margaret Dwyer and Rene
Schillinger.

State of the College: 8 steps to the future

Faculty,
staff and students filled the Milbank Chapel September 15 to hear
President Levine and Dean Zumwalt deliver the annual State of the
College address. Closed captioning was provided this year.

After
new business and the introduction of new faculty and staff, the
President welcomed the community. The President offered a special
welcome to Professor Emeritus Maxine Greene, whom he called, "one of
the legends of the College." He reiterated the purpose of the
institution: to prepare the current and next generation of leaders and
to help shape the social debate and social policy on issues of
education. He then outlined how those ideas have been transformed into
action over the past five years.

He spoke about technology and
physical plant improvements saying, "We have remade the College into a
virtual technological community as well as upgraded facilities,
offices, the roof, the student lounge, the entrance ramp and
residential units."

The budget, salaries and revenues of the
school were also noted. Levine said that multi-year budgeting is being
put into practice and that the College has completed a major study on
comparable salaries of professional staff within and outside the
College. He added that results of the study will be brought to the
Professional Staff Assembly and the Managment Network. He also
mentioned the upcoming Capital Campaign, for which nearly $70 million
of the $140 million goal has already been raised.

"Reflecting on
the accomplishments over the last five years," Levine said, "I think
the most important thing we have done is to establish a vision of what
we want Teachers College to be."

He then outlined an eight-step
agenda for the future of the College.The first step involves the
continued academic reorganization of the College."Five-year planning
was approved by every department, and this year we are putting the
plans into place," Levine said. As part of this objective, the College
will establish a five-year plan for CEO & I, a comprehensive
enrollment plan and initiate task forces on issues such as financial
aid and incentives on research.

Technological development was
the second activity Levine stressed, including the establishment of TC
Ventures, which allows the College to "make the world our campus" with
educational products through technology. He also proposed providing
professional development in the use of technology for faculty members.
The work of the Technology Task Force, which met last year, will
continue and will specifically examine the issue of intellectual
property.

As a third step, the institution will look at "what we
are doing at TC" and how to make it stronger. A study underway by
Towers Perrin, a managment firm, will recommend ways to strengthen
administrative and customer services.

Fourth, a $6.5 million
gift will provide improvements to the library, Levine said. "This is a
chance for us to stop and ask what our library should look like in the
years to come."

The launching of the Capital Campaign and its
contribution to improvements to the physical plant, such as Horace
Mann, Milbank Chapel and Milbank Library, were the fifth and sixth
steps Levine mentioned.

The seventh step, according to Levine, is the development of a strategic planning process for the College.

"The
eighth issue, and the one I want to focus on," Levine said, "is
diversity in the community." As the College is moving in a new
direction, he added, the focus is being placed on quality, service,
equity and fairness.

"We are a world-renowned institution and
we talk about diversity all the time," Levine said. Although the
institution has a history of diversity in the student body and
curricula, more needs to be done. "I want us to agree on the agenda for
action," he added.

He discussed the issues that were highlighted
in community conversations last year, adding that the quality of life
at the College was an important concern. "It is a very difficult topic,
and one academic communities typically back away from," Levine said.
"We shouldn't. We can't. There are no cookie cutter solutions."

Levine
said that to address these concerns he established the Teachers College
Task Force on Diversity and Community. (See story on page 3). The Task
Force's effort to establish the College as a "magnet institution" for
diverse students, faculty, and staff is a goal Levine believes the
College should embrace. The Task Force offered 31 recommendations to
achieve this mission, and though Levine admitted he doesn't agree with
all 31, he said he agrees with "the vast majority of them."

The
next step, according to the President, is to bring the report to the
various groups that make up the College community. The community, he
said, needs to agree on the goals and the activities needed to achieve
this vision.

"I don't want to wait until the community has
finished its work in deliberating over the report," Levine added. "So I
plan to take the following actions immediately." First, he said he will
appoint himself to serve as the "point person" on diversity and,
second, he plans to begin an immediate search for an Assistant to the
President for Diversity and Community.

Lauding the work of
IUME (the Institute for Urban and Minority Education) the President
looked forward to an Institute with a more powerful voice regarding
urban and minority populations in the schools.

He also noted
his disappointment in the number of faculty recruited by the Target of
Opportunities Committee, which was established 12 years ago to recruit
faculty members of color. To remedy that, former TC Professor Ed Gordon
will work with the College on this agenda. The Task Force on Diversity
will also continue reviewing progress and advising the President.

In
addition to diversity and community, Dean Zumwalt said the College
needs to look at high standards and community as well as accountability
and community. "Taken together they present us with an interlocking set
of challenges," she said. "These are similar issues being faced by our
public schools and our nation. As one of the leading graduate schools
of education, we should be modeling the kind of learning communities we
advocate."

The Dean also announced that 53 faculty members
received letters of recognition for receiving exceptionally high course
evaluations in courses of nine or more students. Eight teachers
obtained high course evaluations in two or more courses, and were
publicly recognized and awarded a $300 stipend to be used at their
discretion. They were: Jay Huebert, Associate Professor, Organization
and Leadership; Lisa Miller, Assistant Professor, Counseling and
Clinical Psychology; Steven Silverman, Professor, Health and Behavior
Studies; Tom Sobol, Christian A. Johnson Professor for Outstanding
Practice; Ruth Vinz, Associate Professor, Arts and Humanities;
Christine Yeh, Assistant Professor, Counseling and Clinical Psychology;
and two instructors from Arts and Humanities, Margaret Dwyer and Rene
Schillinger.